As noted previously, the present invention is intended to be used by those persons who would otherwise experience difficulties when bending down for putting on socks or stockings. In applying such articles of clothing, the user must bend the body until the foot is reached. Although this maneuver presents no real problem for those who are physically fit, for others such as those suffering from, for example, arthritis, sciatica, low back pain, as well as those who are overly obese or who are recovering from surgery to the spine and for normal, healthy women in the later stages of pregnancy, the ability to bend the required extent can prove to be a formidable task.
For those who are incapacitated, it is oftentimes necessary to seek the assistance of another in order to apply socks or stockings. However, a significant segment of the elderly and the infirm live alone and, without some type of assistance, the application of socks or stockings would otherwise prove to be impossible.
Although devices of this nature have been available for over twenty years, all such designs generally fall into two basic categories. The first category involves those devices which are composed of molded or hard plastic produced by an injection molding process. The second variety consists of a more flexible body generally in the form of a sheet of flexible polyethylene plastic.
The molded devices are virtually all of the same shape with only minor variations in accessories. These devices are semi-circular in cross-section with an opening for the foot to slip in. The sock is stretched over the molded device and held in place by a notch in the plastic or by a disk or wedge of foam that adds some resistance to prevent the sock from slipping off of the molded plastic body. A long rope or yarn with handles is attached to allow persons to control the plastic body without having to bend forward to bring their foot up to don the sock.
The flexible plastic sheet material constituting the second category of such devices also commonly uses a disk of foam or, in one case, terry cloth cover, to help hold the sock in place. When the sock is drawn onto the flexible sheet, the sheet bends to conform to the diameter of the sock and thus takes on a semi-circular shape. The flexible product also employs long-handled rope or yarn to facilitate application of the sock to the foot and ankle of the user. As such, once the sock is put onto the device, whether molded or of a flexible style, the foot is then placed into the curved body of the device and it, together with the sock is pulled up the leg. The device is then released by the user once the sock extends over the ankle.
As noted previously, all current designs are semi-circular in cross-section either by being molded as such or by assuming such a cross-section once the device, in the form of flexible sheeting material, is placed within the sock. All such prior art devices exhibit only marginal utility for the human foot, not being circular in shape, does not readily conform to such devices. In addition, existing designs do not accommodate even the average width foot let alone the wider or splayed foot. It has thus been observed that existing devices have always been made to fit a sock, but not the human foot.
In addition to the above, the use of notches or foam pads to help keep the sock in place on the device until it has been pulled into the foot and ankle of the user have proven to be problematic. The notch system serves to help hold the sock in place while it is pulled onto the device but does not serve a functional purpose once the sock is no longer gathered at the top of the device. Foam disks glued onto such devices tend to fall off with repeated use. Foam disks may also catch the sock or stocking and prevent them from being pulled to within reach.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a device having a unique configuration resulting in a product which more readily functions to capture a sock or stocking, apply the sock or stocking to the foot and ankle of the user and release from the sock or stocking once the application of the sock or stocking has been completed.
These and further objects of the present invention will be more readily appreciated when considering the following disclosure and appended drawings.